Banner Blog

Hybrid working is making it easier for people to take care of their health and well-being, data shows.  

Despite fewer walks to and from work and lunch-time strolls, staying at home to work on a few days a week isn’t impacting our physical activity levels. Data shows that Brits are maintaining their physical activity levels since before the COVID pandemic and the advent of hybrid working.  

This could be thanks to hybrid working helping us cut down on non-productive work-related activities, such as commutes, affording employees more time to indulge in their health, fitness and well-being, while some are finding it easier to exercise during work hours. This conclusion is backed up by data showing home gym equipment in particular, such as under-desk treadmills, is trending.  

With rising costs hitting both small and large businesses, and the cost-of-living crisis impacting employees, everyone is looking for ways to save cash. The innovative ökoform desk, designed originally just to create a more comfortable experience for desk workers, could offer massive savings to businesses and hybrid workers alike. 

Energy costs are skyrocketing, meaning businesses are having to fork out more money than ever before to maintain a suitable office environment. It comes as no surprise, therefore, that one in five businesses have reported energy prices as their main concern for February 2023, according to ONS data. With this in mind, many businesses are now looking for alternative ways to keep business costs low, without moving to a WFH model.

Introducing, the ökoform heated desk...

Through extensive research across Europe, Fujitsu, partnered with Quocirca have found that more and more organisations are searching for ways to transfer information from paper format into electronic data that can be stored and searched more easily.

They found that 42% of the 508 respondents are moving to a less paper environment and a further 45% have targets to move their processes away from paper.

There are many problems with paper, starting with space, it takes a lot of physical space and manually searching and retrieving paper-based information is both time consuming and overall inefficient. Manual transcription of content from paper to electronic systems without scanning introduces human errors and maintaining paper quality and security over expanding legal time limits often requires expensive, environmentally controlled storage.

HP has named Banner an Amplify Impact 5-Star Catalyst Partner for driving sustainability!

From training our employees, to leading our sales engagement with sustainability, we are helping our customers make an impact too.

The program touched all parts of the Banner business, including:

- Our Sales teams, who completed a combined 65 hours of Sustainability Basics and Fundamentals training modules
- Our Merchandise and Specials teams, who completed 60 'HP Life' personal development training programs
- Our entire HR team who undertook 'Empower People' training, and who worked with a third party consultancy to further Banner's Diversity, Equality, and Inclusion programmes
- Banner's Head of CSR and Social Value worked with a third-party consultant to produce a Decarbonisation Plan
... and more to demonstrate our commitment to our people and sustainability.

At the time of award, December 2022, Banner was the first partner worldwide to achieve this accreditation, and we are immensely proud of the 5-Star ranking that we were awarded. 

As part of our inclusive approach to working, Banner is now a member of the Hidden Disabilities Sunflower, a membership organisation that supports those who wish to discreetly identify that they have a hidden disability through the wearing of a Sunflower lanyard or Pin.

As members, we will promote the wearing of the lanyard for any colleague who wishes to and will provide training and team briefings for operational colleagues, so that they understand how they might support someone wearing the Sunflower.

Plants aren’t cutting it in the office in terms of improving air quality, new search data suggests.

Indoor air quality has remained one of the top priorities for employees, with 62% of the global workforce citing they would leave their job if their employer failed to create a healthier indoor environment, according to Honeywell’s Health Building Survey 2022.

Similarly, interest in office plants boomed during lockdown. However, despite continued interest in the quality of office air, new data shows a sharp drop-off in search volume for office plants.

Searches for “indoor plants” have similarly declined since the end of lockdown, whilst searches for “air quality” and “office air” have been consistent throughout 2022.

IT teams are learning to adapt to a new workforce and create a new workspace for those choosing to adopt the hybrid model of working.

They need to evolve to support a new generation of creative, independent users with improved devices, managed services, and sustainable practices.

Year after year, Lexmark continues to be recognised as an industry leader for our sustainability initiatives and environmental programmes.

Their goal is to reduce their environmental impact and help you do the same. Their innovative use of post-consumer recycled (PCR) materials help reduce both the consumption of new natural resources and the amount of waste in landfills. All of their manufacturing sites are certified to rigorous quality, environmental and safety standards recognised worldwide, including ISO 9001, ISO 14001 & OHSAS 1801. Lexmark recovers millions of used cartridges each year that are either reused or recycled via the award-winning Lexmark Cartridge Collection Programme (LCCP). Their cartridge collection programmes are available in more than 60 countries, representing more than 90% of their global market.

Consolidate and manage cost on your Education Supplies, with Banner.

We’re delighted to introduce our NEW Education Supplies catalogue! Inside you'll find products from traditional office supplies, facilities supplies, cleaning & hygiene, technology, print & promotional merchandise, and furniture. Banner supply the products and services you need to ensure your education setting runs smoothly. 

We've carefully selected products that are tailored to the education sector, including an enhanced infection control range to protect employees and enable you and your teams to focus on what's important - educating our future generations. 

Integrating inclusivity and accessibility into the office remains a low priority for businesses despite a growing HR desire to attract more diverse talent than ever before, according to trends data.

Post-COVID, mental health and wellbeing has become one of the top priorities for employees, as highlighted in CIPHR’s report. Business leaders have acknowledged, therefore, the importance of creating office space that can best support its employees.

Reflecting this, data gathered by Banner indicates that attracting diverse talent is a huge priority for business owners at the moment. However, not only is the search volume around creating inclusive and accessible office design low, but those who searched indicated uncertainty on how best this can be achieved.